Rediscover Catholicism

Rediscover the Genius of Catholicism from Dynamic Catholic on Vimeo.

Mary's Meals and Child 31

Child 31 is a powerful documentary film which tells the story of Mary's Meals, a charity which provides a life-changing meal to hungry children every school day.

The inspiring film follows Mary's Meals founder Magnus MacFarlane-Barrow to Malawi, India, and Kenya and gives the viewer a glimpse of his simple, yet ground-breaking approach that aims to lift the developing world out of poverty.

When Child 31 was released in 2012, the charity was providing 700,031 children with a daily meal in their place of education. It is now reaching over 822,000 children across the world as part of its mission to draw children into the classroom and help them realise their dreams.

Donate to Mary's Meals: http://www.marysmeals.org
Hear the voices of Child 31: http://www.child31film.com

Momnipotent: A Study to help you find peace, balance, and joy

Is being a mother what you thought it would be? The exhaustion, monotony, mounting unfinished projects, loss of a sense of self…Too many moms feel disillusioned and overwhelmed. Many moms quietly resign themselves to the idea that peace, happiness, and joy are things they will need to find in spite of motherhood, not because of it.

Journey with a diverse group of women as they discuss real issues that moms face every day…

Momnipotent validates the dignity and importance of motherhood and will help you recognize your uniquely feminine strengths and see how you can use those strengths to find peace, balance, and joy in being the woman God created and called you to be.

Learn more about Momnipotent.

Father Bernard Youth Center, Mount Angel, Oregon

Our Mission
The mission of the Fr. Bernard Youth Center is "to provide a special place for prayer and personal growth, focused on assisting youth and their mentors in their spiritual development."

The Center
To fulfill this mission FBYC maintains a 15,000 sq. ft. facility suitable for a variety of functions ranging from youth retreats and camps to business meetings and special events such as annual meetings, auctions, fundraising dinners and family celebrations.

FBYC provides an opportunity to step away from the daily distractions of life into a beautiful, serene and extremely well appointed space to focus on what is truly important for that time. Businesses, families, administrators, teachers, students and youth and young-adult groups will benefit by taking advantage of this truly unique opportunity.

FBYC was dedicated January 17, 2006 by Archbishop Vlazny from the Portland Archdiocese and has become a focal point for religious educators unlike any other in the Northwest.

Fr. Bernard Sander
Fr. Bernard was a Benedictine Monk for over 60 years and known for his involvement engaging religious and non-religious alike to do works beneficial to society. His leadership lead to many varied ministries and forms of outreach and countless individuals credit him for their successes on a particular path in life.

Facility
FBYC is conveniently and centrally located along the southern edge of the Benedictine Queen of Angels Monastery. With nearly 15,000 square feet of working space, our building is an ideal setting for a youth retreat center.

FBYC houses a remarkably beautiful Chapel featuring six- 4 x 7 foot icon-etched glass panels that create a breath-taking backdrop for the bronze tabernacle which houses the wounded heart monstrance, St. Christi. The blessed Eucharist is reserved in the tabernacle and the Youth Center, unique from all other retreat centers.

The Chapel can seat 80 people with each chair supporting a kneeler. Available extra seating expands the capacity to 120 or more. The Adoration area, within the Chapel, can comfortably accommodate up to 24 people. There are three Reconciliation Chapels adjacent to the Chapel as well as four additional meeting rooms ideal for small group discussions.

Our Fireside Room was designed to be a theatre-like space with plush seating for 65 attendees. It is equipped with a computer, DVD/CD player, and an amplifier system for presentations, movie watching and heart-to-heart discussions. FBYC features a full-service commercial kitchen for meal preparation or catering with an adjoining Great Room that serves as a dining room and activity area. The Great Room is ideal for dances, projection movies, shuffleboard and table-tennis. The room's capacity is 200 people with round table seating for 120.

Overnight lodging for retreatants and mentors is provided in Marmion Hall, located directly across the street. The well-appointed rooms are furnished with bunk beds; and most with dressers and desks that include two drawers and a closet.

A sports field, a fire pit by a covered eating area as well as a fire pit and a "Bobcat trail" by the lower "amphitheater" make the outdoor experience more fun. A natural living water feature is in the works.

Evangelism at 30,000 Feet

By Todd Aglialoro

Catholic Answers

I have a plane trip coming up, and with it, my standard pre-flight anxiety.

It’s not fear of flying (I don’t love hurtling through low orbit, separated from death by a few inches of aluminum and plexiglass, but I tolerate it)—it’s fear that God may put someone in the next seat for me to evangelize.

Some people—extroverts, probably—relish the opportunity to witness, but not me. I’m just no good at it. Give me a theological point to argue, an enemy of the Faith to fight, and I’m your man. But I can’t seem to work up the gumption to lean over to a stranger and say, “Hello there. Can I tell you about Jesus?”

Nor am I particularly good at explaining the very basics of what I believe and why. I remember once in high school getting into a lunchroom argument with the school atheist. He wore Slayer t-shirts and mosh-pit bruises, and would later be elected senior class president—an embarrassment that the student council soon rectified by impeaching him on technical grounds. (They couldn’t do anything, though, when the same voting bloc picked Wish You Were Here as our prom song.)

“How do you know God exists?” he asked with an edge to his voice.

From my mouth squeaked out the feeblest of replies: “Because he does.” Honestly, that was the best I could do.

I won’t be too hard on my ignorant teenage self, though. Fact is, many of us are more effective apologists and evangelists when we have something to work with. Cold-calling souls or giving a basic witness can be a much harder task than, say, responding to a direct attack on the Eucharist. As Chesterton put it, “There is about all complete conviction a kind of huge hopelessness. The belief is so big that it takes a long time to get it into action.”

So I’ve been thinking about what I’d say if, while several miles above the earth, someone were to see me crossing myself before eating a bag of peanuts and ask, in all sincerity, Why do you believe it? Ground-up, blank-slate answer: Go.

To continue reading, click here...

Bunch O Balloons

Fill and tie hundreds of water balloons in minutes with our attachment that comes ready-to-go, no preparation necessary!

Find out more about Bunch O Balloons at Kickstarter.com.

Give Us This Day

Launched in August 2011, Give Us This Day is published by Liturgical Press, Collegeville, MN. Liturgical Press began publishing for the Church in 1926. Since then, our dedicated staff continues to sustain our original mission of proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ. We are truly committed to providing religious and spiritual resources of the highest relevance and quality to the Christian community. As we strive to carry on the great tradition of Liturgical Press under the guidance of our Lord and St. John’s Abbey, we thank you for your faithful support and look forward to serving you in the many years to come.

A new, personal prayer periodical from Liturgical Press-a trusted publisher of liturgy, Scripture, and spirituality founded by the Benedictines of Saint John's Abbey in 1926.

Deeply rooted in the Catholic tradition, Give Us This Day is about prayer-praying daily, praying well, praying with confidence.

Give Us This Day supports your desire to establish prayer as a part of your life, enhancing your existing practices and deepening your encounter with God by providing:

• A practical approach to daily prayer
• Prayers and readings for daily Mass
• Daily prayer, Morning and Evening
• A reflection on the Scriptures for each day

Magnificat

Magnificat, a spiritual guide to help you:

• Develop your prayer life,
• Grow in your spiritual life,
• Find a way to a more profound love for Our Blessed Savior,
• and Participate in the holy Mass with greater fervor.

Join the worldwide Magnificat family and live a life of prayer! Every day, the monthly magazine Magnificat offers:

• Beautiful prayers for both morning and evening, drawn from the treasures of the Liturgy of the Hours,
• The official texts of the daily Mass,
• Meditations written by the renowned Fathers of the Church,
• and a great variety of spiritual writings, essays on the lives of the saints of today and the past.

In each Magnificat, you will also find an article giving valuable spiritual insight, into a masterpiece of sacred art. Magnificat is a lavishly printed, easy-to-read pocket-sized worship aid, of more than 400 pages. It can be used to follow the daily Mass and can also be read at home for personal or family prayer.

Visit www.Magnificat.net.

The Word Among Us

As a result of the movement of the Holy Spirit in this century, many laypeople are seeking practical help in reading scripture and living in greater openness to the Spirit. The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council recognized this when they encouraged all believers “to learn ‘the surpassing knowledge of Jesus Christ’ (Philippians 3:8) by frequent reading of the divine Scriptures... Let them go gladly to the sacred text itself, whether in the sacred liturgy, which is full of the divine words, or in devout reading... Let them remember, however, that prayer should accompany the reading of sacred Scripture, so that a dialogue takes place between God and man. For ‘we speak to him when we pray; we listen to him when we read the divine oracles’ ” (Dei Verbum, 25).

Through this magazine, we hope in some way to help our readers to answer this call. In the first letter to our readers (December 1981), we wrote: “The Word Among Us is intended to assist people in reading, meditating on and understanding scripture [and to] provide sound, practical advice for Catholics on the living out of the Christian life... We can have a relationship of love and friendship with the Son of God.”

Throughout its history, The Word Among Us has continued to follow this pattern of encouraging its readers to experience God’s presence in scripture and prayer and thus receive the grace of the Spirit more deeply in their lives.

The magazine’s name, The Word Among Us, comes from the Prologue to the Gospel of John: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father” (John 1:14). This passage reflects the vision and purpose of our publication: To be an instrument of the Spirit whose desire is to manifest Jesus’ presence in and to the children of God. In this way, we hope to contribute to the church’s ongoing mission of proclaiming the gospel to the world and growing ever more deeply in our love for the Lord.

Visit www.wau.org.

Symbolon

Symbolon is a dynamic, state-of-the-art video resource for the evangelization and catechesis of adults. It aims at transforming adults on all levels—how they think, how they pray, and how they live—by providing a comprehensive and compelling explanation of the Catholic faith. This resource can be used at the parish, or through our online digital platform, at home or wherever one may be at to bring adults into a deeper relationship with Jesus Christ and the Church.

Symbolon is a production of the Augustine Institute, and it stems directly from the Institute’s mission of transforming Catholics for a new Evangelization. Symbolon is specifically designed to transform adult Catholics to re-discover their Catholic faith, in order to be witnessing disciples of Jesus Christ for the New Evangelization.

Adam and Eve Poke Fun

One day, in the Garden of Eden, Adam calls out to God, "Lord, I have a problem."

"What is thy problem, Adam?" God asks.

"Lord, I know thou created me and hast provided for me and surrounded me with yon beautiful garden and all of these wonderful animals, but I am just not happy."

"Why is that, Adam?" comes the reply from the heavens.

"Lord, I am lonely."

"Well Adam, in that case, I have the perfect solution. I shall create a 'woman' for thee."

"What manner of creature is a 'woman,' Lord?"

"This 'woman' will be the most intelligent, sensitive, caring, and beautifulcreature I have ever created. She will be so intelligent that she can figure out what thou wantest before thou wantest it. She will be sosensitive and caring that she will know thy every mood and how to make thee happy. Her beauty will rival that of the heavens and earth. She willunquestioningly care for thy every need and desire. She will be the perfect companion for thee," replies the Creator.

"Truly, she soundeth wonderful."

"She will be, but this is going to cost thee, Adam."

"How much will this 'woman' cost me Lord?" Adam asks.

"She will cost thee thy right arm, thy right leg, an eye, and an ear."

Adam ponders this for a moment.

"What can I get for a rib?"

Lest any women get upset, here is the female reply:

Eve walked with the Lord and thanked Him every day for the Beautiful Garden of Eden.

One day, she asked the Creator, "Lord, why is it that creeping things, and the beasts of the field, walk two by two but I am alone?"

The Lord answered, "I have only waiting for you to ask. I have the perfect mate for you. It is called a man. He will care for you. He will be the strong and silent type, and he will be the father of your children. He has some faults, but I believe your generous nature will overlook them."

Eve responded, "Oh, thank you, Lord. I have long wanted a companion like myself. A man sounds fine."

The Lord said, "Eve, there is one thing you must do if you truly wish the man as your life's companion."

"Yes, Lord, I will do whatever you wish," the woman quickly answered.

"Remember that I warned you the man has some faults....One of them is his ego. It will require something of you."

"Ego, Lord? What will a man's ego require of me?" asked Eve.

And the Lord said, "You will have to let the man think that I created him first.

Source: www.keepingitcatholic.org

Women Made New

Crystalina Evert's site challenges women to "Face it. Own it. Heal it." Women Made New encourages women in need of personal healing, empowering them to become the women God created them to be. Visit Women Made New.

Mass Times

The purpose of the Mass Times ministry is to help Catholics get to Mass by helping them find churches and worship times worldwide. We do this by hosting and sharing the most comprehensive database of Catholic churches and worship times in existence. Dioceses, parishes, and many volunteers help us keep the database current. We also host the masstimes.org website that our visitors use to search for Mass times.

It can be difficult for Catholics to find a Mass when traveling or when it is not practical to attend their regular parishes. It is not always easy to find the right diocesan or parish websites. Mass Times makes it much easier to search for a Mass by presenting all the possibilities in a geographical area on one page. We provide worship times, church locations, contact information, website links and maps. There are 117,000 churches in 201 countries/territories.

Since Mass Times began its ministry we have performed over 150 million church lookups for visitors to our website. Mass Times cooperates with parishes, dioceses and bishops, councils and conferences to assemble the information about the churches. Mass Times only lists Catholic churches that are on diocesan web sites or information provided by a dioceses.

Visit MassTimes.org.

PiercedHearts.org

All for the Heart of Jesus through the Heart of Mary.

"We are protagonists of our present; we are the actual builders of this history. God wants to write - through our hearts, through our lives and fiats - the history of salvation: a history of love, of grace, of life, of communion and of holiness."

(Mother Adela, Foundress SCTJM)

Who We Are
The "Servants of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary" are a diocesan religious institute founded in 1990 by Mother Adela Galindo in the Archdiocese of Miami, Florida, USA.

We are members of the Council of Major Superiors of Women Religious (CMSWR).

“We are called to manifest the reign of love of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary as the building force for the construction of a new civilization.” Mother Adela

Our Foundress offers the Holy Father the love and unconditional fidelity of our foundation.

Our Spiritual Charism
To be a living image and presence of the Heart of Mary in the heart of the Church and place our Marian charism at the service of the Petrine principle.

Fundamental Dimensions of Our Charism:

• EUCHARISTIC...Total dedication of our lives in love to the Eucharistic Heart
• MARIAN...Being a living image and presence of the Heart of Mary
• CHARISMATIC...Actively receiving and communicating the gifts of the Holy Spirit
• IN THE HEART OF THE CHURCH...Generously placing our feminine genius in loving communion and service of the Petrine Principle

Our Four Vows

• Poverty: with a generous and diligent heart, to detach myself of all things to have the Heart of Jesus as my only inheritance and treasure and to freely give all that I am and have for the common good of our Institute.
• Chastity: with a spousal and undivided heart, to love the Heart of Jesus with a total, oblative and unconditional dedication and to be open to receive and communicate the fecundity that flows from the potency of this communion of love.
• Obedience: with a receptive and docile heart, to responsibly and effectively dispose myself to fulfill the designs of love of the Heart of Jesus manifested through my legitimate superiors and the government of our Institute.
• Total Marian Availability: to be a living image and presence of the Heart of Mary and to generously dispose the potentialities of my feminine genius in loving communion and service of the Petrine principle, thus enfleshing our Marian charism in the Heart of the Church.

Some Elements

• Eucharistic adoration and contemplation
• A ready openness to the power or the Holy Spirit and to the charisms
• Total consecration and identification with the Heart of Mary
• To love, think and live in the Heart of the Church
• To daily seek conversion in the active exercise of virtue
• To live and do all things in the spirit of prayer, of heroic love, and of humble service in the fulfillment of duty
• Fraternal life with joy and simplicity of heart
• Mature, generous, and responsible disposition to embrace every mission entrusted
• Integral formation, covering all areas of he consecrated person
• Apostolic ardor: enflaming the world with the love of the Pierced Hearts

Our Patron Saints
"Witnesses to love" of the Pierced Hearts of Jesus and Mary

• Saint Joseph
• Saint John the Apostle
• Saint Francis de Sales
• Saint Margaret Mary Alacoque
• Saint Therese of Lisieux
• Saint Maximilian Maria Kolbe
• Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska
• Saint Pope John Paul II

"Each one of them with their life, doctrine and apostolic mission, illuminates a specific area of our charism."

Mother Adela

A Contemplative and Apostolic Community
From our Eucharistic contemplation and communion of love flows the potency of our apostolic fecundity.

Our Apostolic Charism
To be ardent witnesses of the power and fecundity of love and the splendor of the Magisterium and Treasures of the Church so as to form the human heart to build a new civilization of love and life in the heart of the Church and in the heart of the world.

"May the love of the Pierced Hearts reign in all hearts!"

Mother Adela

Learn more at PiercedHearts.org.

Steubenville Youth Conferences

"I invite all Christians, everywhere, at this very moment, to a renewed personal encounter with Jesus Christ."

Pope Francis, Evangelii Gaudium

Steubenville Conferences are an outreach of Franciscan University of Steubenville that have served Catholics across North America since 1975 in response to the Lord's call to St. Francis: "Go, rebuild My Church." As a reply to St. Francis' own model, we seek to evangelize by inviting people to encounter Christ in a deeper, more intimate relationship with the Eucharist and sacrament of reconciliation. Our mission is to call, empower, and equip Catholics to follow Christ as His disciples, serve the Church in a variety of ministries, and participate in the work of the New Evangelization. We seek to help all participants encounter the power and person of the Holy Spirit and allow His presence to renew, transform, and encourage their hearts. We want His grace to enkindle in them a deeper love for Jesus, His Church, and our brothers and sisters. We extend to our participants an invitation to strengthen their faith, to renew their minds and spirits, and to enjoy the fellowship of thousands of other Catholics who share a passion for Christ and His Church. Above all, we go forward with a fervent desire to spread His love and to work to build the Kingdom of God through prayer, service, and witness.

Steubenville Youth Conferences serve 45,000 high school youth and their leaders at 20 different conferences across North America every summer. This outreach seeks to invite teens into a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ and His Church, empowering them to live as His disciples. These conferences are high-energy events featuring inspiring talks, dynamic worship, and profound encounters with Jesus Christ in the Eucharist and sacrament of reconciliation.

"Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid; For the Lord God is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation." Isaiah 12:2

Connect | Unite | Grow
http://www.steubenvilleconferences.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/steubenville
Twitter: http://twitter.com/go2steubenville
Flickr: http://flickr.com/steubenville

Video editor: Cory Heimann - Artist/Founder @ Likable Art
Videographer: Keith Major - Director of Marketing & Media @ Franciscan University of Steubenville

Catholicism Study Program

Fr. Robert Barron created this groundbreaking program as a thematic presentation of what Catholics believe and why, so all adults can come to a deeper understanding of the Catholic Faith. Not a video lecture, Church history or scripture study, this engaging and interesting formational program uses the art, architecture, literature, music and all the treasures of the Catholic tradition to illuminate the timeless teachings of the Church.

The CATHOLICISM Study Program presents the strong, ecclesial dimension of the Catholic Faith – God’s revelation through Jesus Christ and His Church. It is comprehensive and faithful, appropriate for:

• RCIA
• Adult lay formation
• Training adult catechists
• Diaconate and other ministerial training
• Mature high school or college/university coursework

The Catholicism Study Program includes:

• Ten compelling episodes from the series on DVD. Filmed in 50 locations throughout 15 countries, the CATHOLICISM DVDs reveal these truths in a visually-breath taking and compelling way, with original, high-definition cinematography.
• A companion study lesson written by Carl Olson for each DVD, complete with extensive commentary, questions for understanding and also questions for application to each participant’s own life.
• CATHOLICISM: Journey to the Heart of the Faith, a companion book based on a more detailed rendering of the scripts from the DVD series.
• Leader’s Program Kit, including facilitator’s guide and study guide answer key.
• Promotional materials to announce the upcoming program in your location.
• Spanish and English subtitles included in each DVD set.
• Can be experienced in 12 or 22 sessions.

Learn more about the Catholicism Study Program.

DivineOffice.org

“From ancient times the Church has had the custom of celebrating each day the liturgy of the hours. In this way the Church fulfills the Lord’s precept to pray without ceasing, at once offering its praise to God the Father and interceding for the salvation of the world.” – Office of the Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship.

Divine Office mission is to evangelize and to nurture our Catholic relationship with God by designing and offering contents, software products, development and design services for the Catholic community.

The Liturgy of the Hours produced by this ministry is recognized as the best Catholic podcast, website and mobile app in 2011 and 2012. Three Divine Office mobile apps were nominated as Best Catholic Mobile App in the About.com Readers’ Choice Awards 2012 edition.

The Divine Office prayer community spans through new media, social media, mobile apps and radio stations. Community members from all around the world gather in prayer through our mobile apps as well as through our free podcast and DivineOffice.org website, which had over 2,8 millions visits, over 525,000 people joined in prayer during 2012, with an year-over-year 60% growth.

Find us and interact with us at:

Website: http://www.DivineOffice.org
Twitter: http://Twitter.com/DivineOffice
Facebook: http:/Facebook.com/DivineOffice
Feedback and Support: http://divine-office.com/support

The Liturgy of the Hours is the prayer of the whole People of God. In it, Christ himself “continues his priestly work through his Church.” His members participate according to their own place in the Church and the circumstances of their lives. The laity, too, are encouraged to recite the divine office either with the priests, among themselves, or individually.

The celebration of the Liturgy of the Hours demands not only harmonizing the voice with the praying heart, but also a deeper “understanding of the liturgy and of the Bible, especially of the Psalms.”

The hymns and litanies of the Liturgy of the Hours integrate the prayer of the psalms into the age of the Church, expressing the symbolism of the time of day, the liturgical season, or the feast being celebrated. Moreover, the reading from the Word of God at each Hour with the subsequent responses or troparia and readings from the Fathers and spiritual masters at certain Hours, reveal the deeper meanings of the mystery being celebrated, assist in understanding the psalms, and help one prepare for silent prayer. The lectio divina, where the Word of God is so read and meditated that it becomes prayer, is thus rooted in the liturgical celebration.

The Liturgy of the Hours, which is like an extension of the Eucharistic celebration, does not exclude but rather (in a complementary way) calls forth the various devotions of the People of God, especially adoration and worship of the Blessed Sacrament.

The worship “in Spirit and in truth” of the New Covenant is not tied exclusively to any one place. The whole earth is sacred and entrusted to the children of men. What matters above all is that, when the faithful assemble in the same place, they are the “living stones,” gathered to be “built into a spiritual house.” The Body of the risen Christ is the spiritual temple from which the source of living water emanates. Incorporated into Christ by the Holy Spirit, “we are the temple of the living God.”

Source: Catechism of the Catholic Church, Part Two, Section One, Chapter Two.

Flocknote

Flocknote (blue) from Flocknote on Vimeo.

Word on Fire

Father Robert Barron is an author, speaker and theologian. He is also the founder of the global media ministry Word on Fire (www.WordOnFire.org), which reaches millions of people by utilizing the tools of new media to draw people into or back to the Catholic Faith.

Father Barron is the creator and host of CATHOLICISM, a groundbreaking, award winning documentary series about the Catholic Faith. The series has aired across the country on PBS and EWTN, and has been seen and broadcast in parishes, universities, schools and media outlets throughout the world. The documentary received a Christopher Award for excellence. Father Barron and Word on Fire also released the documentary "CATHOLICISM: The New Evangelization" in 2013.

Father Barron currently serves as the Rector/President of Mundelein Seminary University of St. Mary of the Lake. He was appointed to the theological faculty of Mundelein Seminary in 1992, and has also served as a visiting professor at the University of Notre Dame and at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas. He was twice scholar in residence at the Pontifical North American College at the Vatican.

Cardinal George calls Fr. Barron "one of the Church's best messengers."

WordOnFire.org - Fr. Barron's website launched in 1999 and currently draws over 1 million visitors a year from every continent. Fr. Barron posts weekly video clips, commentaries and radio sermons and offers an audio archive of over 500 homilies. Podcasts of his sermons are widely used by tens of thousands of visitors each month.

TV - EWTN (The Eternal Word Television Network) and CatholicTV broadcasts Fr. Barron's DVDs to a worldwide audience of over 150 million people.

Radio - Since 1999, Fr. Barron's weekly Word on Fire program has been broadcast in Chicago (WGN) and throughout the country (Relevant Radio - 950 AM Chicago) to 28 million listeners in 17 states. Fr. Barron also is a regular commentator on the "Busted Halo Show" on the Sirius satellite radio network based in New York.

DVDs - Fr. Barron's DVDs are used as powerful faith formation tools in universities, schools, churches and homes around the country. The series includes Seven Deadly Sins, Seven Lively Virtues; Faith Clips; Conversion: Following the Call of Christ; and Untold Blessing: Three Paths to Holiness.

YouTube - With over 180 online video commentaries by Fr. Barron, over 1 million viewers worldwide have made him the most popular of any evangelist on YouTube. These frequent, high-quality productions include brief and lively theological reviews of contemporary culture, including movies such as No Country for Old Men, Apocalypto, and The Departed, a three-part critical review of Christopher Hitchen's book God is Not Great, The Discovery Channel's The Jesus Tomb, the HBO series "The Sopranos", "Rome" and more.

Missions - MISSION CHICAGO features evangelization lectures by Fr. Barron at the behest of Cardinal George. These special missions and presentations throughout the Archdiocese are centered in downtown Chicago and attract business, civic, and cultural leaders.

Books - His numerous books and essays serve as critical educational and inspirational tools for seminarians, priests, parishioners and young people worldwide. His published works are also central to the numerous retreats, workshop and talks that he leads around the country.

• Catholicism; 2011
• Eucharist; 2008
• Word On Fire: Proclaiming the Power of Christ; 2008
• The Priority of Christ: Toward a Post-Liberal Catholicism; June 2007
• Bridging the Great Divide: Musings of a Post-Liberal, Post-Conservative, Evangelical Catholic; 2004
• The Strangest Way: Walking the Christian Path; 2002
• Heaven in Stone and Glass; 2000
• And Now I See: A Theology of Transformation; 1998
• Thomas Aquinas: Spiritual Master; 1996
• A Study of the De potentia of Thomas Aquinas in Light of the Dogmatik of Paul Tillich; 1993

Augustine Institute

The Augustine Institute serves the formation of Catholics for the New Evangelization. Through our academic and parish programs, we equip Catholics intellectually, spiritually, and pastorally to renew the Church and transform the world for Christ.

Emotional Virtue

Many people ask me, “What is emotional virtue?” They say, “I know what emotions are, and I know what virtue is, but together?” One time I was talking with a young woman, and she said, “I feel like such a mess inside.” As we began to unpack the hurt of past relationships, her lack of confidence, the pressure she puts on herself, the images she felt like she had to compete with… she started to see why she felt that way. I gave a talk one night at Benedictine College called, “Love, Emotions, Taylor Swift, Mental Stalking & Mr. Right” over 300 women came, and I knew I was on to something.

Over the past few years, I have come to realize that both men and women are looking for answers. Many women tell me, “I know what not to do… but what should I do? How do I prepare for Mr. Right?” And men come to me with a puzzled look, “I don’t understand women? What am I doing wrong?” or “I have experienced many of the things you talk about!” In a hook-up culture where everyone seems to just be “texting, talking, or hanging out,” pursuing a relationship can be more than complicated – we need a plan, and lots of virtue.

Emotional virtue is all about realigning our own hearts in hopes of realigning our relationships with one another. Emotions are not bad and shouldn’t be suppressed. Emotions and passions are good and give us zeal and “fire” for life! But if we aren’t in control of our emotions (harnessing them and training them) then they will control us; and when they control us, we are no longer free to love. Emotional virtue, therefore, frees us to truly love with an undivided heart.

Want to learn more? Click here for a 10-minute podcast from Sarah Swafford about Emotional Virtue.

Visit EmotionalVirtue.com.

The Porn Effect

Half of all Christian men say they are addicted to pornography. The Porn Effect's mission is to expose the reality behind the fantasy of pornography and to equip individuals to find freedom from it. Matt Fradd and a number of well-trained medical, psychological, and theological professionals work together to help individuals end their pornography addiction.

Visit ThePornEffect.com.

Chastity Project

Jason and Crystalina Evert have spoken to more than one million people on six continents about the virtue of chastity. After working for Catholic Answers in San Diego for more than a decade, the couple moved to Denver and began a new ministry focused solely on promoting purity: Chastity Project.

Although the two speak to 100,000 students per year, one of their dreams was to make chastity resources available to as many souls around the world as possible. Leaders (both young and old) from more than fifty countries have contacted Jason and Crystalina, asking for chastity resources to be donated to their communities. The two have authored dozens of chastity books, CDs, and DVDs, but didn’t have the funds to purchase the rights to the products and didn’t have the resources for global distribution. Upon moving to Colorado, Jason took the photo below of a few boxes of chastity books in a closet in his home, hoping that one day he would have an entire garage of them to send around the world. Scripture promises that God “is able to accomplish far more than all we ask or imagine,” and we know that He always keeps His promises.

Not long after taking the photo, Jason received an invitation to present his ministry vision to the leaders of Stewardship: A Mission of Faith. He shared with them how he had created numerous resources, and hoped to purchase the rights to them, so that they could be given away or sold for as little as possible. However, he didn’t have the money, and didn’t own a warehouse. David Abel, the founder of Stewardship, simply said, “Come downstairs with me.” Jason followed, and watched as David opened the doors to one of his warehouses (below) that ships more than 200,000 products daily, and said, “I’m all in.” Thanks to the providence of God and the generosity of a pair of benefactors, Jason and Crystalina were able to purchase the rights to more than a dozen of their resources, and now are offering everything at up to 90% off.

Chastity Project believes that young people play a pivotal role in the new evangelization, and therefore invites them to launch chastity projects within their schools and churches to promote the good news of purity to their peers. As Pope Francis said, “Do you know what the best tool is for evangelizing the young? Another young person. This is the path to follow!” Those who minister to teens today have unlimited needs, but very limited budgets. Therefore, through low-cost resource distribution, media appearances, seminars, and social media, Chastity Project exists to promote the virtue of chastity so that individuals can see God, and be free to love (Matt. 5:8). The orange and green colors of the Chastity Project logo are from the tilma of Our Lady of Guadalupe, to whom the ministry is consecrated.

Visit Chastity Project.

Radiant Magazine

Radiant is a chic, classy Catholic magazine distributed nationally to women ages 15-27. It features Catholic news and articles on issues affecting young women today: health, beauty, politics, love, style, and difficult life circumstances.

See Radiant online.

USHispanicMinistry.com

I recently met Patty Jimenez and her husband Vince Olea at the Diocese of Boise Convocation. They are the founders of ushispanicministry.com. Below is information about their mission and website.

Accompanying the Diverse Hispanic Reality in the U.S.
We are just like you, co-workers in the vineyard, living our Catholic faith by walking alongside others. Over the years we have dreamed of a gathering place where we can meet and hear from those doing similar work. From leaders in the fields to theologians, we all experience the grace-filled mixture of blessings and challenges within the diverse realities of Hispanics in the U.S. In support of these voices, we also dreamed of a place that supplies access to a variety of resources and facilitates a network for the benefit of all of us serving Hispanic ministry in the U.S. We are pleased to offer U.S. Hispanic Ministry as that place.

Our Mission
U.S. Hispanic Ministry believes that Hispanic ministry serves the entire Church and accompanies all Hispanics in their lived contexts and languages. Contributing to this mission, we offer three means of interaction.

1. Unique and Diverse Voices. From recent immigrants who may only speak Spanish, to Hispanics who are bilingual and bicultural, to 3rd and 4th generation U.S. born Hispanics who may only speak English, U.S. Hispanic Ministry is committed to promoting a dialogue around the diverse and unique communities within the U.S. Hispanic population. In order to generate these discussions, we offer a rotation of lively contributors, each giving voice to her/his community and prompting questions, insights and challenges. Articles, Facebook interaction, Twitter discussions, and other exciting social gathering vehicles will help build community at a local and national level.
2. Resources. U.S. Hispanic Ministry is dedicated to gathering quality resources and highlighting established and new ministerial models, services, and offerings. U.S. Hispanic Ministry invites all ministries, educational institutions, organizations, catechetical publishers, and service providers working with and for Hispanic communities to join us by providing a summary of who you are, your logo, and a link to your website.
3. Networking. Networking at U.S. Hispanic Ministry may happen organically through your participation in Facebook and Twitter, or commenting on our posts. U.S. Hispanic Ministry will create secure and purposeful ways to network with and accompany one another.

By providing a comprehensive central website, we believe U.S. Hispanic Ministry contributes to the forward moving efforts needed to accompany the growing diversity of Catholic Hispanics in the U.S.

Light of Love by Imagine Sisters

Have you ever met a religious sister? They tend to be the happiest women on Earth. They pray, they sacrifice their lives in love and service to those in need, they live in community–and in many ways they’re just like you! Whether you’ve been taught by sisters or you’ve never experienced their joy in person, Imagine Sisters passionately proposes the possibility of becoming a sister in the world today.

The Mission of Imagine Sisters is to inspire and support vocations to Catholic women’s religious life. Our hope is to help the world meet sisters on fire for their faith. Through online resources and media, Imagine Sisters works to ignite the conversation of vocational discernment.

Jim Gaffigan

Comedian Jim Gaffigan has 5 children; here's how he answers the "Why so many?!" question:

“Well, why not? I guess the reasons against having more children always seem uninspiring and superficial. What exactly am I missing out on? Money? A few more hours of sleep? A more peaceful meal? More hair? These are nothing compared to what I get from these five monsters who rule my life. I believe each of my five children has made me a better man. So I figure I only need another thirty-four kids to be a pretty decent guy."

Check out Jim Daly's blog - http://bit.ly/1mCXxFi
Photo by www.CoreyMelton.com

The Butterfly Circus

At the height of the Great Depression, the showman of a renowned circus discovers a man without limbs being exploited at a carnival sideshow, but after an intriguing encounter with the showman he becomes driven to hope against everything he has ever believed.

Fishers of Men

Fishers of Men is a film requested by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. This fast-paced film on vocations to the priesthood has been described as the best vocational film ever produced for the Catholic Church. 8 out of 10 seminarians in the United States own a copy of the film.

Order Fishers of Men from Grassroots Films.

Jeopardy PowerPoint

Answer: A well-crafted presentation for evaluating participant learning in a rapid, informative, fun way using one of America's foremost gameshows.

Question: What is a Jeopardy PowerPoint?

You can adapt the content on this PowerPoint with your own set of questions. The PowerPoint has particular features you will find useful:

• Allows contestants to choose any question on the board and return to the home screen.
• Includes two rounds with Double Jeopardy amounts in the second.
• Only needs to have questions and answers copied and pasted. Animation should not change.
• Stock content already in the presentation may be useable in many ministry settings for various ages.

Pit parents versus teens for Confirmation, quiz your RCIA class before they enter into the Triduum, pose the presentation as a review for students in schools, and use it as you please.

Download Jeopardy PowerPoint.

Fr. Chase Hilgenbrinck

Today in the Diocese of Peoria, Illinois, Deacon Chase Hilgenbrinck will be ordained a priest of Jesus Christ for the Roman Catholic Church. As a former professional soccer player, his story is compelling and has received much coverage. Below is an article from ESPN and a video from his diocese chronicling his decision to leave the soccer pitch for a life in the church.

-----------------------

"For everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under heaven." -- Ecclesiastes 3:1

EMMITSBURG, Md. -- Chase Hilgenbrinck is alone in the middle of the field, just outside the goal box, with his back to it. He's facing his teammates, who are standing several yards away, split into two lines for pregame warm-ups. One by one -- left, then right -- they kick a soccer ball his way, and start jogging in his direction. Chase deftly deflects each ball off to the side with a flick of his foot, setting up each teammate to launch a shot on goal.

It's been a couple months since he last put on a uniform. But it still feels comfortable. Natural. His mind drifts back to the last time he suited up: Sunday, July 13, at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. He was a member of Major League Soccer's New England Revolution, facing Mexican club Santos Laguna in a SuperLiga game. Now, on the final weekend of September, he's preparing to play against a team from St. Joseph's.

St. Joseph's Seminary.

My, how things have changed.

We all have grand dreams when we're growing up. We don't just want to do something with our lives -- we want to be great at it. And for many of us, the ultimate dream was to be a professional athlete.

Chase Hilgenbrinck dreamed that dream. Three months ago, he was playing professional soccer, in his native country. He had reached the end of the rainbow. Only, at the end of the rainbow, he discovered another path he felt compelled to follow. So he gave it all up, at the very moment he had strived for his entire life.

Ironically, Chase never made national headlines during his pro soccer career. But he made headlines around the world when he ended it.

From the Associated Press, July 14, 2008:

"Hilgenbrinck accepted the calling on Monday when he left the New England Revolution and retired from professional soccer to enter a seminary, where he will spend the next six years studying theology and philosophy so he can be ordained as a Roman Catholic priest."

Click here to continue reading.

Dynamic Catholic Book Program

It all started with a very simple idea: 32% of the people at Christmas Mass only come to Church once a year. It’s our best opportunity to re-engage them. For years we have been letting them come and go with no real effort to win them back. What if it was as simple as just giving them a great Catholic book on the way out of church? It is. Books change our lives. Sometimes all it takes to bring people back to Church is the right book. Learn more about the Book Program.

What is the Dynamic Catholic Parish Book Program?
A simple and affordable way to re-engage disengaged Catholics and re-energize your parish.



How does it work?
1. You order a bunch of books.
2. At Christmas, Easter, or Ash Wednesday, friendly volunteers pass out the books to people as they leave Church.
3. You encourage people to read the book with regular and inspiring announcements.
4. You hear people talking about how the book is changing their lives for months, and months, and months…

How much does it cost?
We believe in keeping things as simple as possible. Order 500 copies or more for $2 per copy (including shipping). Orders 6 to 499 copies are $3 per copy (including shipping). See the titles in the Parish Book Program.

Interesting Facts
1. The Dynamic Catholic Parish Book Program (DCPBP) is the most successful New Evangelization initiative in the United States today.
2. Parishes that participate in the program three years in a row experience a 9.1% increase in attendance and a 10.4% increase in collections on average.
3. So far the DCPBP has served more than 4,000 of the 15,000 parishes in the United States.
4. 99.7% of parishes that participate say they will do it again.
5. More than 5,000,000 books and CDs have been distributed through the program.
6. Since its inception, the DCPBP has brought more people back to the Catholic Church than any other program in America.
7. The first book offered through this program was Rediscover Catholicism. First published in 2001, this book was on the Catholic Book Publishers Association bestseller list for more than seven years in a row (or 364 weeks) before the Dynamic Catholic Parish Book Program began. Today it is the bestselling Catholic book in America ever!
8. Parishioners who read Catholic books on a regular basis contribute four times more financially to their parish (and are three times more likely to volunteer at the their parish) than parishioners who do not.
9. In 2007, only one percent of American Catholics read a Catholic book. The DCBP has increased the number to 9.3% in 2012. That is a 900% increase in just five short years.
10. Spiritual reading has been central to our spiritual development since before the invention of the printing press. The great spiritual directors of every age have encouraged those they direct to read great texts that would lead to spiritual growth.
11. If only one person comes back to Church because you pass out books… and that person is forty years old, lives to eighty, and puts just $10 in the collection each week, he/she will contribute $20,800 to your parish during the remainder of his/her life. You would have to buy 10,401 books for it to be a bad financial investment. If just two people come back you would have to buy 20,801 books for it to be a bad financial investment. If ten people come back to Church you would have to buy 104,001 books to lose money.
12. 32% of Catholics only come to church once a year – at Christmas! After Christmas, Ash Wednesday and Easter are our best opportunities to re-engage Catholics.
13. Order less than 500 books for $3 a copy. Order more than 500 books for $2 a copy. Shipping and handling is included in these prices. 14. The books we offer for as little as $2 usually retail for $17.95 each. These are books, not booklets or pamphlets.
15. 43% of parishes call within two weeks of distributing the books to order more.
16. The largest single parish order ever was 10,000 books by Holy Spirit in Fremont, California.
17. St. Mary of the Annunciation in Mundelein, Illinois has participated in the program eight times, which is the record at this time.
18. In 2012, the Archdiocese of Minneapolis ordered 200,000 copies of Rediscover Catholicism to distribute at Christmas Masses, making it the largest single order in the history of the program.

Catholics Come Home

The CatholicsComeHome.org "Epic" national TV commercial, or Evangomercial (TM), features the history, beauty, spirituality, and accomplishments of the Catholic Church over the centuries. "Epic" is filled with religious images of the Mass and Sacraments, Catholic churches, Catholic schools and universities, Sacred Scripture and Tradition, the saints and popes of the Church, and much more, to evoke the expansive impact of Catholicism on the world and individuals souls throughout history and in the ages to come, and to invite fallen-away Catholic and non-Catholics to come home.

Sexual Authenticity

From Amazon.com:

Real glimpses into the hearts and lives of other people are rare…

Columnist and author Melinda Selmys gives readers an unusual opportunity to explore the topic of homosexuality and the Catholic Faith from a fresh, sincere perspective. Her intensely personal reflections help clarify the misconceptions that have hindered meaningful dialogue between Catholics and homosexuals. Transcending stereotypes and avoiding pat sentiments, she speaks directly to every Christian who has experienced same-sex attraction or knows someone who has.

In addition to her personal story of exchanging secular lesbianism for Catholicism and resolving her own inner conflicts, the author presents an enlightening analysis of history, social theory, and media influence on the subject of homosexuality. She refutes much of the clumsy theorizing and junk science common from both sides of the debate, effectively bridging many gaps between perceptions and reality. Selmys addresses the complexities surrounding sexual identity with pronounced compassion, adding a practical discussion of the Theology of the Body to complete the circle from a Catholic perspective.

Her ground-breaking book expertly walks the fine line between divisiveness and platitudes. A must read for everyone who has ever felt ambiguous about the Church's stance on homosexuality or those who have longed to see the fall of anti-gay iconoclasm that has compromised Christianity.

Purchase Sexual Authenticity for $10.19 from Amazon.com.

A Father Who Keeps His Promises

Everybody felt it: a moment of eerie silence, a low rumble and then the ground began to shake. Buildings swayed and buckled, then collapsed like houses of cards. Less than four minutes later, over thirty thousand were dead from a magnitude 8.2 earthquake that rocked and nearly flattened Armenia in 1989.

In the muddled chaos, a distress father bolted through the winding streets leading to the school where his son had gone earlier that morning. The man couldn’t stop thinking about the promise he’d given his son many times: “No matter what happens, Armand, I’ll always be there.”

He reached the site where the school had been, but saw only a pile of rubble. He just stood there at first, fighting back tears, and then took off, stumbling over debris, toward the east corner where he knew his son’s classroom had been.

With nothing but his bare hands, he started to dig. He was desperately pulling up bricks and pieces of wall-plaster, while others stood by watching in forlorn disbelief. He heard someone growl, “Forget it, mister. They’re all dead.”

He looked up, flustered, and replied, “You can grumble, or you can help me lift these bricks.” Only a few pitched in, and most of them gave up once their muscles began to ache. But the man couldn’t stop thinking about his son.

He kept digging and digging – for hours … twelve hours … eighteen hours … twenty-four hours … thirty-six hours … Finally, into the thirty-eight hour, he heard a muffled groan from under a piece of wallboard.

He seized the board, pulled it back, and cried, “ARMAND!” From the darkness came a slight shaking voice, “Papa…!?”

Other weak voices began calling out, as the young survivors stirred beneath the still uncleared rubble. Gasps and shouts of bewildered relief came from the few onlookers and parents who remained. They found fourteen of the thirty-tree students still alive.

When Armand finally emerged, he tried to help dig, until all his surviving classmates were out. Everybody standing there heard him as he turned to his friends and said, “See, I told you my father wouldn’t forget us.”

That’s the kind of faith we need, because that’s the kind of Father we have.

Hahn, Scott (1998). A Father Who Keeps His Promises: God's Covenant Love in Scripture. Servant Books.

Saint John Paul the Great: His Five Great Loves

A French novelist once wrote, “Tell me what you love, and I will tell you who you are.” Although there are countless ways to study Saint John Paul the Great, the most direct route is by entering the man’s heart.

Discover the five greatest loves of Saint John Paul II, through remarkable unpublished stories about him from bishops, priests who organized his papal pilgrimages, his students in Poland, Swiss Guards, and others. Mining through a mountain of papal resources, Jason Evert has uncovered the gems and now presents the Church a treasure chest brimming with the jewels of the saint’s life. Rekindle your own faith by learning what (and who) captivated the heart of this great saint.

This brand new biography features never-before published stories of our beloved Pope John Paul II!

Buy the book from Lighthouse Catholic Media for only $9.99.

How to Become a Saint

Contrary to popular belief, saints weren't altogether perfect people during their lifetimes—but it's not good works alone that garner you a spot next to Francis of Assisi.

Contrition Confession Satisfaction

Whether this is a refresher or an introduction, this film creatively walks through the Sacrament of Reconciliation in a way that will stick with you.

Purchase this video for $10 along with a discussion guide here: https://outsidedabox.com/film/contrition-confession-satisfaction/

This short film was produced by Outside da Box https://www.outsidedabox.com in collaboration with the Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston. It is the 19th installment of the 48-film VCAT (video catechism) http://www.vcat.org series for teens. Films are being released monthly from October 2012 - September 2016.

Forming Intentional Disciples

How can we transmit a living, personal Catholic faith to future generations? By coming to know Jesus Christ, and following him as his disciples. These are times of immense challenge and immense opportunity for the Catholic Church.

Consider these statistics for the United States.

• Only 30 percent of Americans who were raised Catholic are still practicing.
• Fully 10 percent of all adults in America are ex-Catholics.
• The number of marriages celebrated in the Church decreased dramatically, by nearly 60 percent, between 1972 and 2010.
• Only 60 percent of Catholics believe in a personal God.

If the Church is to reverse these trends, the evangelizers must first be evangelized-in other words, Catholics-in-the-pew must make a conscious choice to know and follow Jesus before they can draw others to him. This work of discipleship lies at the heart of Forming Intentional Disciples, a book designed to help Church leaders, parish staff and all Catholics transform parish life from within. Drawing upon her fifteen years of experience with the Catherine of Siena Institute, Sherry Weddell leads readers through steps that will help Catholics enter more deeply into a relationship with God and the river of apostolic creativity, charisms, and vocation that flow from that relationship for the sake of the Church and the world.

Learn about the five thresholds of postmodern conversion, how to open a conversation about faith and belief, how to ask thought-provoking questions and establish an atmosphere of trust, when to tell the Great Story of Jesus, how to help someone respond to God's call to intentional discipleship, and much more.

And be prepared for conversion because when life at the parish level changes, the life of the whole Church will change.

Buy this book on Amazon for only $11.99.

Flocknote Emails

You can receive daily tidbits from the Catechism and the Gospels so that over the course of the year you would read the YouCat and all four Gospels. Do you have two minutes a day to grow in your knowledge of the Catholic faith? If faith in God through the Church is the purpose of our lives, what better way is there to spend our time? Sign up through Flocknote today.

Read the YouCat in a Year

Read the Gospels in a Year

As You Wish

A homily on love and obedience from Fr. Mike Schmitz of the Diocese of Duluth.

“God did not say, ‘If you love me, you will have warm fuzzies all of the time, it’ll be awesome.’ He didn’t say that! Jesus says, ‘If you love me, do what I say.’ … We realize that love is more than a feeling. If I want to assess how well am I loving God, the question is this: how well am I obeying His commandments?”

Empty Easter Eggs Express God's Sacrificial Love

From Chicken Soup for the Christian Soul
By Ida Mae Kempel

Jeremy was born with a twisted body, a slow mind and a chronic, terminal illness that had been slowly killing him all his young life. Still, his parents had tried to give him as normal a life as possible and had sent him to St. Theresa's Elementary School. At the age of 12, Jeremy was only in second grade, seemingly unable to learn.

His teacher, Doris Miller, often became exasperated with him. He would squirm in his seat, drool and make grunting noises. At other times, he spoke clearly and distinctly, as if a spot of light had penetrated the darkness of his brain. Most of the time, however, Jeremy irritated his teacher.

One day, she called his parents and asked them to come to St. Teresa's for a consultation. As the Foresters sat quietly in the empty classroom, Doris said to them, "Jeremy really belongs in a special school. It isn't fair to him to be with younger children who don't have learning problems. Why, there is a five-year gap between his age and that of the other students!" Mrs. Forrester cried softly into a tissue while her husband spoke. "Miss Miller," he said, "there is no school of that kind nearby. It would be a terrible shock for Jeremy if we had to take him out of this school. We know he really likes it here."

Doris sat for a long time after they left, staring at the snow outside the window. Its coldness seemed to seep into her soul. She wanted to sympathize with the Foresters. After all, their only child had a terminal illness. But it wasn't fair to keep him in her class. She had 18 other youngsters to teach and Jeremy was a distraction. Furthermore, he would never learn to read or write. Why spend any more time trying? As she pondered the situation, guilt washed over her. "Oh God," she said aloud, "here I am complaining when my problems are nothing compared with that poor family! Please help me to be more patient with Jeremy." From that day on, she tried hard to ignore Jeremy 's noises and his blank stares.

Then one day he limped to her desk, dragging his bad leg behind him. "I love you, Miss Miller," he exclaimed, loudly enough for the whole class to hear. The other children snickered, and Doris's face turned red. She stammered, "wh-why, that's very nice, Jeremy. Now please take your seat."

Spring came, and the children talked excitedly about the coming of Easter. Doris told them the story of Jesus, and then to emphasize the idea of new life springing forth, she gave each of the children a large plastic egg. "Now," she said to them "I want you to take this home and bring it back tomorrow with something inside that shows new life. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Miss Miller!" The children responded enthusiastically - all except for Jeremy. He just listened intently; his eyes never left her face. He did not even make his usual noises. Had he understood what she had said about Jesus' death and resurrection? Did he understand the assignment? Perhaps she should call his parents and explain the project to them.

That evening, Doris' kitchen sink stopped up. She called the landlord and waited an hour for him to come by and unclog it. After that, she still had to shop for groceries, iron a blouse and prepare a vocabulary test for the next day. She completely forgot about phoning Jeremy 's parents.

The next morning, 19 children came to school, laughing and talking as they placed their eggs in the large wicker basket on Miss Miller's desk. After they completed their math lesson, it was time to open the eggs. In the first egg, Doris found a flower. "Oh yes, a flower is certainly a sign of new life," she said. "When plants peek through the ground we know that spring is here. "A small girl in the first row waved her arms. "That's my egg, Miss Miller," she called out. The next egg contained a plastic butterfly, which looked very real. Doris held it up. "We all know that a caterpillar changes and turns into a beautiful butterfly. Yes, that is new life, too" little Judy smiled proudly and said, "Miss Miller, that one is mine."

Next Doris found a rock with moss on it. She explained that the moss, too, showed life. Billy spoke up from the back of the classroom. "My daddy helped me!" He beamed. Then Doris opened the fourth egg. She gasped. The egg was empty! Surely it must be Jeremy 's, she thought, and, of course, he did not understand her instructions. If only she had not forgotten to phone his parents. Because she did not want to embarrass him, she quietly set the egg aside and reached for another.

Suddenly Jeremy spoke up. "Miss Miller, aren't you going to talk about my egg?" Flustered, Doris replied, "but Jeremy - your egg is empty!" He looked into her eyes and said softly, "yes, but Jesus' tomb was empty too!" Time stopped. When she could speak again. Doris asked him, "Do you know why the tomb was empty?" "Oh yes!" Jeremy exclaimed. "Jesus was killed and put in there. Then his Father raised him up!" The recess bell rang. While the children excitedly ran out to the school yard, Doris cried. The cold inside her melted completely away.

Three months later Jeremy died. Those who paid their respects at the mortuary were surprised to see 19 eggs on top of his casket, all of them empty.

Prologue from Rediscover Catholicism

Imagine this.

You’re driving home from work next Monday. You turn on the radio and you hear a brief report about a small village in India where some people have suddenly died, strangely, of a flu that has never been seen before. It’s not influenza, but 4 people are dead, so the CDC is sending some doctors to India to investigate.

You don’t think to much about it—people die every day—but coming home from church the following Sunday you hear another report on the radio, only now they say it’s not 4 people who have died, but 30,000 (Kelly, 2010) in the back hills of India. Whole villages have been wiped out and experts confirm this flu is a strain that has never been seen before.

By the time you get up Monday morning, it’s the lead story. The disease is spreading. IT’s not just India that is affected. Now it has spread to Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, and northern Africa, but it still seems far away. Before you know it, you’re hearing about this story everywhere. The media have now coined it “the mystery flu.” The president had announced that he and his family are praying for the victims and their families, and are hoping for the situation to be resolved quickly. But everyone is wondering how we are ever going to contain it.

That’s when the President of France makes an announcement that shocks Europe: He is closing the French borders. No one can enter the country and that’s why that night you’re watching a little bit of CNN before going to bed. Your jaw hits your chest when a weeping woman’s word are translated into English from a French news program: There’s a man lying in a hospital in Paris dying of the mystery flu. It has come to Europe.

Panic strikes. As best they can tell, after contracting the disease, you have it for a week before you even know it, then you have 4 days of unbelievable symptoms, and then you die.

The British close their borders, but it’s too late. The disease breaks out in Southampton, Liverpool, and London, and on Tuesday morning the President of the US makes the following announcement: Due to a national-security risk, all flights to and from the US have been canceled. IF your loved ones are overseas, I’m sorry. They cannot come home until we find a cure for this horrific disease.

Within 4 days, America is plunged into an unbelievable fear. People are wondering, what if it comes to this country? Preachers on TV are saying it’s the scourage of God. Then on Tuesday night you are at church for boble study when someone runs in from the parking lot and yells, “Turn on a radio!” And while everyone listens to a small radio, the announcement is made: Two women are lying in a hospital in NYC dying of the mystery flu. It has come to America.

Within hours the disease envelops the country. People are working around the clock, trying to find an antidote but nothing is working. The disease breaks out in CA, OR, AR, FL, MA, it’s as though it’s just sweeping in from the borders.

Then suddenly the news come out: The code has been broken. A cure has been found, A vaccine can be made. But it’s going to take the blood of somebody who hasn’t been infected. So you and I are asked to do just one thing; Go to the nearest hospital and have our blood tested. When we hear the sirens go off in our neighborhood, we are to make out way quickly, quietly, and safely to the hospital.

Sure enough, by the time you and your family get to the hospital it’s late Friday night. There are long lines of people and a constant rush of doctors and nurses taking blood and putting labels on it. Finally it is your turn. You go first , then your spouse and children follow, and once the doctors have taken your blood they say to you, “Wait here in the parking lot for your name to be called.” You stand around with your family and neighbors, scared, waiting, wondering. Wondering quietly to yourself, what on earth is going on here? Is this the end of the world? How did it ever come to this?

Nobody seems to have had their name called; the doctors just keep taking peoples blood. But then suddenly a young man comes running out of the hospital screaming. He’s yelling a name and waving a clipboard. You don’t hear him at first. “What’s he saying?” Someone asks. The young man screams the name again as he and a team of medical staff run in your direction, but again you cannot hear him, But then your son tugs on your jacket and says, “Daddy, that’s me, That’s my name they’re calling” Before you know it, they have grabbed your boy. “Wait a minute, Hold on!” you say, running after them. “That’s my son.”

“It’s okay,” they reply. “We think he has the right blood type. We just need to check one more time to make sure he doesn’t have the disease.”

Five tense minutes later, outcome the doctors and nurses, crying and hugging each other; some are even laughing. It’s the first time you have seen anybody laugh in a week. An old doctor walks up to you and your spouse and says, “thank you, your son’s blood is perfect. It’s clean, it’s pure, he doesn’t have the disease, and we can use it to make the vaccine.”

As the news begins to spread across the parking lot, people scream and pray and laugh and cry. You can hear the crowd erupting in the background as the gray-haired doctor pulls you and your spouse aside to say, “I need to talk to you. We didn’t realize that the donor would be a minor and we…we need you to sign a consent form.”

The doctor presents the form and you quickly begin to sign it, but then your eyes catches something. The box for the number of pints of blood to be takes is empty.

“How many pints?” you ask. That is when the old doctors smile fades, and he says,”We had no idea it would be a child. We weren’t prepared for that”.

You ask him again, “how many pints?” The old doctor looks away and says regretfully, “We are going to need it all!”

“But I don’t understand. What do you mean you need it all? He’s my only son!”

The doctor grabs you by the shoulders, pulls you close, looks you straight in the eyes, and says, “We are talking about the whole world here, Do you understand? The whole world. Please sign the form. We need to hurry!”

“But can’t you give him a transfusion?” You plead.

“If we had clean blood we would, but we don’t. Please, will you sign the form?” What would you do?

In numb silence you sign the form because you know it’s the only thing to do. Then the doctor says to you, “Would you like to have a moment with your son before we get started?”

Could you walk into that hospital room where your son sits on a table saying, “Daddy? Mommy? What’s going on?” Could you tell your son you love him? And when the doctors and nurse come back in and say, “I’m sorry we’ve got to get started now; people all over the world are dying,” could you leave? Could you walk out while your son is crying out to you, “Mom? Dad? What’s going on? Where are you going? Why are you leaving? Why have you abandoned me?”

The following week, they hold a ceremony to honor your son for his phenomenal contribution to humanity…but some people sleep through it, others don’t even bother to come because they have better things to do, and some people come with pretentious smiles and pretend to care, while others sit around and say, “This is boring!” Wouldn’t you want to stand up and say, “Excuse me! I’m not sure if you aware of it or not, but the amazing life you have, my son died so that you could have that life. My son died so that you could live. He died for you. Does it mean nothing to you?”

Perhaps this is what God wants to say.
Father, seeing it form your eyes should break our hearts. Maybe now we can begin to comprehend the great love you have for us.

Kelly, M. (2010). Rediscovering Catholicism (2nd ed.). Cincinnati, OH: Beacon Publishing.

Welcome Home

In Mathew 5:8, Jesus said, "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God." This short film, produced by Cory Heimann of Likable Art, metaphorically communicates the importance and beauty of confession, showing the parallel between home plate on the baseball diamond and the human soul.

99 Balloons

Eliot was born with an undeveloped lung, a heart with a hole in it and DNA that placed faulty information into each and every cell of his body. However, that could not stop the living God from proclaiming Himself through this boy who never uttered a word.

Check out www.ninetynineballoons.com for more information about Eliot.

Advent Conspiracy

This is a video we worked on for this year's Advent Conspiracy push. If you, your church, or your organization would like to know more, just go to www.adventconspiracy.org

Ash Wednesday and Lent in Two Minutes

Advent in Two Minutes

Satan Called a Convention

Satan called a worldwide convention of demons. In his opening address he said, "We can't keep Christians from going to church. We can't keep them from reading their Bibles and knowing the truth. We can't even keep them from forming an intimate relationship with their Savior. Once they gain that connection with Jesus, our power over them is broken. So let them go to their churches; let them have their covered dish dinners, but steal their time, so they don't have time to develop a relationship with Jesus Christ. This is what I want you to do," said the devil: "Distract them from gaining hold of their Savior and maintaining that vital connection throughout their day!"

"How shall we do this?" his demons shouted. "Keep them busy in the nonessentials of life and invent innumerable schemes to occupy their minds," he answered. "Tempt them to spend, spend, spend, and borrow, borrow, borrow. Persuade the wives to go to work for long hours and the husbands to work 6-7 days each week, 10-12 hours a day, so they can afford their empty lifestyles. Keep them from spending time with their children. As their families fragment, soon their homes will offer no escape from the pressures of work!"

"Over-stimulate their minds so that they cannot hear that still, small voice. Entice them to play the radio or cassette player whenever they drive. To keep the TV, VCR, CDs and their PCs going constantly in their home and see to it that every store and restaurant in the world plays non-biblical music constantly. This will jam their minds and break that union with Christ. Fill the coffee tables with magazines and newspapers. Pound their minds with the news 24 hours a day. Invade their driving moments with billboards. Flood their mailboxes with junk mail, mail order catalogs, sweepstakes, and every kind of newsletter and promotional offering free products, services and false hopes."

"Give them Santa Claus to distract them from teaching their children the real meaning of Christmas. Give them an Easter bunny so they won't talk about his resurrection and power over sin and death. Even in their recreation, let them be excessive. Have them return from their recreation exhausted. Keep them too busy to go out in nature and reflect on God's creation. Send them to amusement parks, sporting events, plays, concerts, and movies instead. Keep them busy, busy, busy!"

"And when they meet for spiritual fellowship, involve them in gossip and small talk so that they leave with troubled consciences. Crowd their lives with so many good causes they have no time to seek power from Jesus. Soon they will be working in their own strength, sacrificing their health and family for the good of the cause. It will work! It will work!"

It was quite a plan! The demons went eagerly to their assignments causing Christians everywhere to get busier and more rushed, going here and there, having little time for their God or their families and friends. Having no time to tell others about the power of Jesus to change lives. I guess the question is, has the devil been successful at his scheme? You be the judge!

Does "busy" mean: B-eing U-nder S-atan's Y-oke?

Author Unknown